Dark Clouds
by Stormy Daye
Summary: Skye is finally living the simple life with her three year old daughter and husband. But when she revisits her past, she doesn't know how much everything will change. Will she ever be happy? Book 3 in the Jamieson family series. *COMPLETE*
1. Prologue

Prologue  
  
I thought once I found the right person that the rest of my life would go just how I wanted it to go. When I was married the first time to Anthony I questioned whether it was the right thing. I missed Trevor who had died a while ago. I would always feel responsible for that. When Derek and I were finally married, I actually felt like this could be where I was supposed to be. There were still so many questions in my life that have been left unanswered. Such as the whereabouts of my mother. But I realize now that sometimes you have to accept the way things are without trying to change them.  
  
Everything will work out the way it's supposed to in the end. I had faith in the strength of love and that rue love would always prevail in the end. I didn't know how true that was for me. 


	2. Chapter One

Chapter One  
  
"Hope dear, come over and have some lunch," I called to my three-year-old daughter. She stood up and waddled over to the picnic table on the lakeshore.  
  
Roberta, our cook had made a grilled cheese with ketchup for her. That was her favourite meal. I watched my sweet daughter eat. Her dark brown hair fell in soft waves to her shoulders. I had it in pigtails held up with little green elastics. Her eyes were hazel, just like her fathers. She had her father's mouth, eyes and nose. She had my hair.  
  
When I was pregnant with her I was worried that she might not me Derek's. But when she was born and I saw those beautiful hazel eyes, I knew that she was definitely Derek's child.  
  
"Where's Daddy?" Hope asked in her sweet little voice.  
  
"He's at work dear," I answered.  
  
Derek and I still lived in the house I had bought with my inheritance from Michael Jamieson, my Grandfather. I had never known him but he had set up a trust fund for a substantial amount of money for all of my father Zack's children. I was the one and only. There was enough money in the trust fund for me to live off of for a lifetime and then some. Derek had gone to law school and he was now the only lawyer in the small town of Duncan. We were very happy with our life.  
  
My former husband, Anthony lived in town with his wife, my half sister, Erin and their son Greg. They seemed happy enough to anyone looking in from the outside, but truly they didn't get along very well. Anthony was bitter towards Erin for ruining his marriage with me. He didn't think any of it was his own fault. Anthony had always been a little selfish and condescending. For this reason I felt sorry for Erin who had given up everything for Anthony. I believed that she had only done what she did to punish me for leaving her so many years ago. But now I thought she really did love Anthony. It was he who didn't return that love.  
  
Anthony despised my husband, Derek Brooks. He thought that Derek stole me from him. That was so far from the truth. I had loved Derek since I was seventeen years old. We were soul mates.  
  
Hope and Greg played together once in awhile. They were half cousins, after all. Other then Derek and I, Erin and Greg were Hope's only other family in Duncan. Everyone else was either dead or lived far away.  
  
They would go to the same school next year and I suspected they would be good friends.  
  
I took my daughter upstairs and put her in bed for her afternoon nap. She rolled over and fell asleep almost instantly. She had always been a very obedient baby. She rarely cried or whined. She slept through the night when she was only one month old.  
  
I went downstairs and had some lunch myself. Tonight was Derek's and my wedding anniversary. We were going to go to a restaurant and then stay in a hotel. Our maid Rachel was going to watch Hope for us. Rachel was married to our butler, Wesley. They hadn't had any kids and they both adored Hope.  
  
My half brother, Tyler also loved her to no end. He spent as much time as possible with her. He was sixteen years old and had already been in two skateboarding competitions. He won first place in one and third place in the other. Skateboarding was Tyler's passion. He practiced every day. There weren't many skaters in Duncan so Tyler went to the city on the weekends when Wesley would drive him to skate at a skate park.  
  
He didn't have many friends at school. He just didn't have anything in common with them. He had been very shy when he first came to live here three years ago. Skateboarding had brought him out of his shell a great deal. He even had a girlfriend, Keely Macintyre who he had been friends with since he was thirteen and just started to date this year.  
  
I was so proud of how far Tyler had come since he arrived here, a scared little boy clutching his sister's shirt. Tyler would never leave Erin's side before and now he actually refused to go other to her house when I took Hope over to see Greg.  
  
"Skye," Rachel called to me.  
  
I went over to see what she wanted.  
  
"This just came for you," she said and handed me a brown envelope.  
  
"Thank you Rachel," I said. I went into the den and ripped open the envelope. I wondered what it could be.  
  
I gasped after reading the white letter inside.  
  
"No," I breathed.  
  
Fred Emerson had a bail hearing next week. Fred had been my father for fifteen years until I found out he was really my uncle. My father was his brother, Zack. Fred had been very abusive towards all of us. Anthony, Tyler, Erin and I. He had been sent to jail for kidnapping Anthony when he was only one year old. He had changed his name from Jamieson to Emerson so it would be harder to find him.  
  
I didn't know what he would if he got out of jail. I hadn't seen him in thirteen years and I had no desire to see him.  
  
The letter said I had to go to his bail hearing and a hearing about Tyler and who would get legal custody of him.  
  
Was it possible that Fred could take Tyler away from me? I couldn't let that happen. I couldn't let Tyler live with a monster like Fred Emerson.  
  
I sat in the den until Derek got home an hour later.  
  
"Derek, I need to talk to you," I said pulling him into the den.  
  
He kissed me and put his strong arms around my waist. He always made me feel safe. But I didn't know if he could protect me from my stepfather.  
  
I showed him the letter and his smile fell from his face.  
  
"Don't worry Skye, no court system will give custody to a convict over us," Derek reassured me. He pushed his wavy blond hair out of his face and squeezed my hand.  
  
"And you can get a restraining order if you are worried about him coming here," he told me.  
  
"I can't go to the hearing Derek," I said. MY heart was beating hard. What would I do if I had to go to it? I don't know if I would be able to stand seeing that man again.  
  
"You have to or the courts will wonder about Tyler," Derek told me softly.  
  
I took a deep breath and said, "Okay, I can do it, as long as you are there with me,"  
  
"I will be there for you," Derek told me.  
  
I hugged my husband tightly.  
  
"I can't wait until we get dinner over with tonight," I said smiling suggestively at him. He laughed and kissed me gently.  
  
"Why should we wait until then!" he said grinning.  
  
I fell back on the couch as he kissed my passionately. I giggled into his mouth and ran my hands through his soft hair. Just then I heard the front door open and close. Tyler was home from school.  
  
I stood up quickly and smoothed out my clothes.  
  
"I guess we'll just have to be patient," I told him. I was a little disappointed and I could tell he was too.  
  
We hadn't made love in awhile because we had both been busy.  
  
I left the den with Derek trailing behind me. "How was school Tyler?" I asked.  
  
"It was okay," he answered. His straw coloured hair was a little long for my taste but that was how he wanted it. His gray eyes always looked sad and forlorn but since Derek and I had gotten married those eyes had gotten brighter.  
  
I debated for a moment whether to tell Tyler about the possible custody battle. But when I saw how happy he looked, I decided against it. Tyler had always gotten the worst of the beatings from Fred. I knew it would terrify him to think that he might have to go back to him.  
  
So I kept the secret until I absolutely had to tell him. Maybe that wasn't the best thing to do, but it was the easy way at the time. I sometimes tended to take to easy road, but that would change soon enough. 


	3. Chapter Two

Chapter Two  
  
"Make sure she goes to bed at eight," I told Rachel as Derek and I were leaving for dinner that night.  
  
"I know!" Rachel said, "I've done this before, you don't have to worry," she assured me. She smiled and told us to have a wonderful time.  
  
We got into Derek's black sunfire and started out on our trip to the city. We didn't go to the city very often, we had no reason to. We had everything we needed here.  
  
"This is going to be great," Derek said reaching over to take my hand. I smiled. I couldn't wait for dinner to be over so we could go to the hotel room. It was going to be nice to be away from Hope for a night. We both loved her very much but she could be a handful at times. It was nice to have a break once in awhile.  
  
We went to a restaurant called, "C'est Delicieux," which means it's delicious. And it was definitely that. I had the lamb with scalloped potatoes and wonderful green beans and carrots. Derek had a steak with a baked potato and a salad. The wine was wonderful and for desert we shared a huge pieces of peach crème brulee.  
  
I was so full afterwards I could hardly even walk out to the car. My black dress actually felt tight around my stomach. I could tell Derek was stuffed too.  
  
We drove to the hotel in silence. I was anticipating getting into to room. I could hardly keep my hands to myself when we were in the elevator. I ran my hand up and down his back.  
  
Finally we made it to the room. It was a nice room with a queen sized bed and a mini bar. It reminded me of the hotels we used to go to when we were only seventeen.  
  
I sat on the bed and Derek came over and kissed me hard on the lips. I fell back on the bed and pulled at his necktie. He pulled away from me and pulled off his jacket and dress shirt. It seemed like he was going agonizingly slow. I longed to have him beside me, with his arms around me.  
  
He leaned over me and kissed my neck and shoulders. Finally he pushed the one strap of my dress away and it was off in a matter of seconds.  
  
"Skye," he moaned as I helped him get his pants off. I kissed his chest and we got under the covers. I ran my hands up and down his back and he rolled over and entered me. We were the most passionate that night out of every other time since we got married. The only time I could remember this was when we so young and in love. Now I felt like I was truly where I belonged.  
  
  
  
The next day we drove back home in silence. It wasn't a bad silence. We were both happy and content to just be together.  
  
"I wonder if Hope gave Rachel any trouble," I worried when we got home.  
  
"She was probably fine," Derek said setting down our bags in our room.  
  
"Rachel?" I called on my way down the stairs. The house was quiet. Where was everyone? This house was rarely empty. There was usually someone home. Roberta or Wesley or Tyler.  
  
Suddenly everyone jumped out from the den and yelled, "SURPRISE!" My heart almost thumped right out of my chest. I laughed.  
  
"Happy Anniversary!" everyone cried. Derek came up beside be and laughed.  
  
"Wow, you guys didn't have to do this!" he said, but I could tell he was very happy they did.  
  
In the den there was ahuge banner that read: HAPPY ANNIVERSARY SKYE AND DEREK! There were balloons everywhere and streamers decorated the ceiling.  
  
The guests included, Roberta, our cook, Rachel and Wesley, Tyler and his girlfriend Keely, my best friend Nikola and a couple of our friends from town.  
  
"Thank you everyone!" I cried happily. I loved everyone in this room. I was so happy to be with all the people I loved at the same time. I felt a tiny pang of disappointment at Erin and little Greg not being here. She was my sister after all.  
  
We had some cake and talked with everyone for a while. It wasn't a huge party but that was ok with me. Nikola pulled me aside when some of the guests were starting to leave.  
  
"So how was your night?" she asked smiling.  
  
"Amazing," I told her about how happy I was with Derek. She had lived right next door to him when he first showed up in Duncan. She knew our whole story. She had given me a lot of good advice concerning him over the years.  
  
Eventually everyone was gone and it was starting to get dark outside. It had been a long day and I was exhausted.  
  
Derek and I had just crawled into bed when there was a knock at the door. I got up and put in a robe.  
  
"Who could that be?" Derek wondered out loud. I was sure it was only Rachel coming to tell me something about Hope.  
  
But I opened the door to find Tyler standing there. He looked ready to cry. To my horror he was holding a brown envelope. The envelope that had the papers regarding Fred's parole hearing.  
  
"Tyler.."  
  
"Why didn't you tell me?" he asked.  
  
"Tyler, I didn't want you to worry," I told him.  
  
"Why should I worry? I might have to live with a father who used to abuse me!" he yelled sarcastically,  
  
"You should have told me!"  
  
"Tyler please, I don't want you to wake up Hope," I said trying to stay calm. Tyler was rarely, if ever angry with me. I was not used to arguing with him. Derek came up behind me and put his hand on my shoulder.  
  
"Why don't you come in and we'll talk about his," he said. He sounded so calm and collected while I felt ready to burst into tears.  
  
Tyler came inside and we sat on the overstuffed chairs in the sitting room section of our room.  
  
"Am I going to have to live with him?" Tyler asked. His eyebrows were furrowed in worry. It broke my heart to see him so scared. He was playing with the hem of his shirt, twisting it around his forefinger. It reminded me of the first day he came here with Erin to live with us. He had been so afraid. I hated for him to be scared again.  
  
"No, it isn't likely, I don't think the courts will give custody to a convicted kidnapper and that is if he even gets out of jail in the first place, which might not even happen," Derek told him.  
  
"We'll do everything possible to make sure you stay with us," I said. I tried to fight back my tears. I wanted to look confident for Tyler but it was hard.  
  
Tyler came over and gave me a hug. He had a solemn look on his face like he wasn't going to get his hopes up that he would be able to stay here.  
  
"You won't have to live with Fred," Derek said with so much conviction in his voice, I even believed him. Tyler nodded and left the room.  
  
"Are you sure?" I asked.  
  
"Of course I am, don't worry about it," Derek told me. We got back into bed and my husband fell asleep right away. I didn't know how he could be so sure about everything. He was always so in control. I wished I could be more like that.  
  
I fell asleep that night, praying that Hope would have her father's strength rather than my weakness.  
  
The next day I took Hope over to see little Greg and Erin. Anthony I knew would be at work in his shop. I had no real desire to see him anyway. Erin and I had come to a truce; we wanted our children to be friends at least. But that didn't mean I wanted to see Anthony any more than was absolutely necessary.  
  
I knocked on the door of their small house in town. It was a cute house, with a white picket fence and blue shutters. Hope was holding onto my hand tightly.  
  
Erin opened the door and smiling slightly. I never knew if she was happy to see me or just smiled to be polite. She was still very beautiful. She kept her curly brown hair long and her brown eyes always seemed to sparkle.  
  
"Hello Hope!" she said, "Skye,"  
  
"Good afternoon Erin," I said and walked into the house.  
  
"Hope!" Greg cried. He had been in the living room playing with his little cars. He was a very cute little boy. He had his father's dark hair and blue eyes. He had Erin's nose and mouth. He kind of reminded me of Tyler when he was younger despite the difference of hair colour.  
  
"Go play with Greg honey," I told Hope. She skipped into the living room and sat with him on the floor.  
  
"Would you like some lemonade?" Erin asked. It was a warm spring day and I thought lemonade would be very refreshing.  
  
I had come here to tell Erin about her father's hearing as well as to have Erin and Greg play together. We sat in the small kitchen at the table. She had a vase of tulips on the table.  
  
"These flowers are beautiful," I commented.  
  
"Thank you, Anthony brought them home for me last night," she said. She had a small smirk on her face that I chose to ignore. I couldn't let her get to me.  
  
"Erin, I have something to tell you about your father," I started.  
  
Her smirk faded and she frowned. I knew she didn't like to talk about Fred.  
  
"He has a parole hearing tomorrow," I said.  
  
Her eyes widened and she set her glass of lemonade down in surprise, "Does Tyler know?" she asked. Erin rarely came over to see Tyler but she still worried about him. They had been so close when they had first come to Duncan to live. Erin's relationship with Anthony had ripped them apart and I don't think Tyler had any desire to ever be close with her again.  
  
"Yes and he didn't take it very well," I explained, "You see, it is possible that Fred could get custody of him back,"  
  
Erin looked afraid.  
  
"Derek said it id very doubtful, but still possible," I told her.  
  
She let out a little breath.  
  
"I'll be leaving at about noon tomorrow to drive to the city for the hearing, you are welcome to come," I told her. I really didn't want to spend such a long trip in the car with her, but I wanted her to be there if she wanted to. She didn't have a license so she wouldn't be able to get there on her own. She was only nineteen after all.  
  
"Yes, thank you, I will come," she said. She sighed, "Wait, I won't have anyone to watch Greg," she said.  
  
"Oh, you can bring him to my house and Rachel will watch him and Hope," I told her.  
  
She stared at me for a minute, as if surprised at my generosity.  
  
"Thank you," she said.  
  
We let Hope and Greg play for a while longer and we left before Anthony was due to be home. Fred had been Anthony's father for many years but I assumed Erin would tell him about the hearing. I avoided my ex husband as much as possible.  
  
"How did it go with Erin?" Derek asked that night.  
  
"Fine, she'll be coming with us tomorrow to the hearing," I told him.  
  
Derek put his arm around me and hugged me close to him. I was so thankful to have a husband like him. I knew he would always protect me. I few years ago before Hope had been born I had been foolish enough to think that I had no reason to live and I had tried to kill myself. I almost drowned in the frozen lake. But someone pulled me out of the water; I believed that person was my one and only true love. I never found out who it was but I had always thought it was Derek.  
  
I fell asleep, dread heavy in my heart. I had a feeling something was going to happen tomorrow at the hearing and it wasn't going to be good. 


	4. Chapter Three

Chapter Three  
  
Erin, Derek and I were on the road early the next morning. Erin had brought Greg over to the house for Rachel to look after for the day. Hope was so excited about him coming there to play; we usually went to Erin's house. The second he got in the door she was pulling him up the stairs to her playroom.  
  
Tyler asked me at breakfast if he could come with us. I said no right away. I didn't want him to be hurt any more than was absolutely necessary. Also I didn't want the courts to take him away from me.  
  
Derek assured me that wouldn't happen but I couldn't help being nervous. We were all mostly quiet for the whole trip. Derek knew that both Erin and I were stressed out over this. Neither of us wanted Fred to get out of jail.  
  
It took is a couple of hours to get the city. We stopped at a small restaurant and had a little something to eat and then we went to the courthouse.  
  
My heart was pounding as we walked up the steps. His hearing was in less than a half and hour and I felt ready to faint.  
  
We sat in the courtroom and just waited. I couldn't stop the thoughts from rolling around in my head.  
  
What if he got out? What if he didn't want us here? Would he be angry?  
  
I was clutching Derek's arm when the guard brought out my stepfather. I felt Erin stiffen beside me. I looked over at her and saw how pale she was. I grabbed her hand and squeezed. She looked me and smiled a little.  
  
We both turned our attention back to Fred Emerson. He was wearing an orange jumpsuit that I assumed all the inmates at the prison had to wear. He looked like he had just shaved, but his black hair was starting to go gray. It was long and looked like it needed a good wash. Somehow the fact that his hands were handcuffed behind his back comforted me. Maybe I felt safe now that it was apparent he couldn't hurt Erin or me.  
  
He spotted us sitting in the back and he narrowed his eyes a little. My grip on Derek's arm and Erin's hand tightened. He looked angry with me. He seemed to be staring only at me, as if his real daughter wasn't sitting right next to me. He sat down and his back was to us.  
  
The judge came in and court was in session.  
  
"Frederick Emerson, you were convicted of kidnapping one-year-old Anthony Cartwright twenty eight years ago. You were sentenced to spend ten years in jail, you have spent the last eight in the facility," Judge Manning said. The judge was a large black man with white hair and dark eyes. He looked huge at the bench. I felt a little intimidated and despite myself I actually felt sorry for Fred, standing before him.  
  
"Yes your Honour," Fred answered.  
  
The judge spoke to Fred about what he had done and Fred surprised me my expressing regret.  
  
"I realize I hurt a great many people. I sincerely wish I could go back in time and change what I have done," he said. I glanced at Erin. She had a hard look on her face. She didn't look ready to forgive her father even if he did apologize profusely. I understood how she felt; Fred had been abusive towards all of us throughout our whole lives.  
  
I used to fell guilty for leaving Tyler, Erin and Anthony alone with him. I was the oldest I should have stayed to protect them. But now I realized that if I hadn't left, Anthony never would have found out his true identity and Tyler would probably still be with Fred. I had no way of knowing what would have happened with Anthony and I.  
  
"I truly believe that you have changed Frederick Emerson and I will grant you parole. You will be on probation for a year and you cannot leave this province. You are now free to go," he judge banged hi gavel and people started moving around.  
  
I just sat motionless in shock. He was free. How could this happen?  
  
Erin was shaking beside me.  
  
"Erin, it's ok, everything will be fine," I managed to tell her even though I felt ready to break down in tears.  
  
The police officer unlocked the handcuffs on my stepfather's wrists and he stepped away. He looked back at us and I prayed that he wouldn't come back and speak to us. My prayers were not answered; he came down the aisle between the seats slowly. He kept constant eye contact with me. I felt hypnotized by his eyes. His eyes were blue like my real father's and mine. The father I had never known.  
  
Suddenly I became furious. It was because of this man that I never knew my real father. If he hadn't stolen my mother away from my father than they never would have left La Vie. My father would have come back eventually and I would have grown up normally with Trevor and Anthony. How different my life had been if Fred Emerson had never interfered.  
  
"Skye." he said.  
  
"Don't," I said.  
  
He glanced at Erin but she wouldn't even look at him.  
  
"Please," he pleaded.  
  
Erin looked only at her feet, "I will never forget what you have done to Tyler and me but I can forgive if you promise to never try to contact either one of us again, you can't try to take Tyler away," Erin said.  
  
She didn't look at him as she spoke.  
  
"I would never do that," he said, "I have a confession to make,"  
  
My heart started beating quickly. What could it possibly be now? Hadn't we been through enough? Or was Fate going to deliver another cruel blow to my bruised and battered self-confidence?  
  
"It's not important what you have to say," Erin said. She wasn't cutting him any slack, but I couldn't blame her.  
  
"It is important, you will need to know this," Fred told Erin.  
  
"What is it?" I asked. Even if Erin didn't want to know, I did. I didn't need any deep dark family secrets snaking their way into my life ever again. I wanted to know everything.  
  
"Before Hannah and I left La Vie, I found out that I couldn't have children," he started. That caught Erin's attention.  
  
"That is why we took Anthony, your mother wanted a little girl and a little boy so badly, I agreed because I only wanted her to be happy," he said.  
  
So that was why they had taken Anthony with them when they left La Vie. I never understood why they would do it. Gregory and Maxine never knew either. No one did.  
  
"Well, in Monkton, Hannah decided she wanted more children," he said, "Of course, we couldn't do it,"  
  
"What are you saying?" Erin asked quietly.  
  
"You and Tyler are adopted," 


	5. Chapter Four

Chapter Four  
  
All three of us sat there in shock.  
  
"What are you talking about?" I asked, breaking the silence, "Mama was pregnant,"  
  
Fred shook his head, "No, that wasn't real, we wanted people to think they were our kids so we made it look like she was pregnant," he explained.  
  
"I can't believe it," I breathed.  
  
Erin still hadn't said a word. I looked over at her and she had the faintest smile on her face. Fred glanced at her uneasily.  
  
"Wow, this is great," she said finally. I saw the hurt register on Fred's face and I immediately felt awful for what Erin said.  
  
"Thank goodness you aren't my father," she said.  
  
"Erin," I whispered and nudged her a little.  
  
"What?" she asked innocently, "Did you expect me to be sad or something?"  
  
No one answered. She got up and walked out of the courtroom.  
  
I looked back to Fred. He had a sad look on his face.  
  
"I'm not surprised by her reaction," he said, "I suppose none of you will ever want to see me again,"  
  
I started to get up to leave but stopped when I felt Derek's hand on my arm. He pulled me back down to him and whispered, "He is your uncle,"  
  
I had forgotten about that. Somehow when he revealed he wasn't related to Erin and Tyler I had assumed he wasn't related to me either. But my father was his brother; I was his niece.  
  
I reached out and took my uncle's hand. He looked up, surprised at my gesture.  
  
"You are my uncle, I am not going to storm away from you like Erin has," I told him. His eyes brightened a bit.  
  
I wrote my address on a piece of paper and gave it to him.  
  
"You can write," I said. He looked a little disappointed that I wasn't asking him to be my father again.  
  
"We have to take it slow and you need to get a job and get back on your feet," I told him. I didn't know if he had really changed, but I wasn't taking any chances. I would not allow him to live in my house where I had a three-year-old.  
  
"Thank you," he said. Derek and I got up to leave.  
  
"Skye?" Fred called.  
  
I turned around to face him.  
  
"I'm sorry," he said.  
  
I smiled a little, grabbed on to Derek's hand and we left the courthouse.  
  
On the way home Erin sat silently. I couldn't tell what emotions she was feeling. She just sat like a stone statue, not moving, barely breathing it seemed.  
  
I felt like a huge weight had been lifted off my shoulders. I was no longer afraid that my stepfather would come searching for me. I didn't feel like he would try to deliberately hurt me anymore. I knew he wouldn't try to take Tyler away from me. I felt like all the loose ends of my formal life were now tied up. Maybe now I could finally relax and be happy.  
  
I couldn't wait to see Hope again. I imagined she'd have a lot of stories to tell me about her day with Greg.  
  
Just as I suspected, she came running into my arms as soon as we walked in the door. Her dark hair was a mass of tangles on her head. Greg came running out after her and threw his arms around his mother's neck.  
  
Derek picked up Hope and hoisted her onto his shoulders. She giggled.  
  
"Did you two have fun today?" Derek asked the children.  
  
Hope nodded enthusiastically.  
  
"Can we come and live here, Mommy?" Greg asked innocently.  
  
Erin looked flustered for a moment then she just let out a forced laugh and ignored her son's question.  
  
"Would you like to stay for dinner Erin?" Derek asked. I wasn't to happy about that idea but I didn't object.  
  
"I don't know." Erin said.  
  
"Please Mommy!" Greg pleaded.  
  
"Yeah, please Aunt Erin!" Hope said along with him. She was yanking on Derek's hair and I could see the discomfort on his face. I laughed.  
  
"Hope, dear, stop pulling Daddy's hair," I told her.  
  
"I'll be bald tomorrow with the way you are pulling on it," Derek teased. He swung her down from his shoulders and started tickling her. She giggled and squealed in joy.  
  
I saw a yearning look on little Greg's face. I knew Anthony was always at his shop in town. He was rarely home to plat with Greg and Erin wasn't the most exciting person to play with either. I felt a pang of sympathy for the little boy. I imagined he had to play by himself every day.  
  
"Why don't you use the phone in the den to invite Anthony over," I told Erin. This was a big sacrifice for me. Anthony and I did not get along but I was willing to have him over so Greg could be with his father for a while.  
  
Erin's eyes darkened a little. I knew she would jump at any chance to make me uncomfortable.  
  
"Okay, thanks," she disappeared into the den to call her husband. Greg and Hope ran off to play until suppertime. I wondered where Tyler was.  
  
"I'm going to go find Tyler," I said.  
  
"Want me to come with you?" Derek asked.  
  
"No, I'll be fine," I started up the stairs, thinking he'd be in his room talking to Keely or doing his homework. I knocked on the door but there was no answer. I pushed open the door slowly but he wasn't inside. I looked in the TV room, the kitchen, and the library. He was nowhere to be found. Finally I found him in the basement. He was skateboarding. He hadn't skated down there in a long time. He always went outside or got Wesley to drive him to a skate park in town. I watched him for a minute. He was doing very complicated tricks. He had gotten very good at it since he had first arrived here.  
  
"Tyler," I called after a minute.  
  
He grabbed his board and looked over at me, "Oh, you're back," he said. He seemed to be expecting the worst, like I would have a social worker here to take him back to Fred. Or even worse, that Fred would be here with us.  
  
"Yes, and I have something to tell you," I said. I sat down on the step and motioned for him to sit beside me.  
  
"They are taking me back to him aren't they?" he said,  
  
"No, of course they aren't, I would never let hat happen," I said. I hugged him tightly and told him what  
  
Fred had told Erin, Derek and I at the courthouse.  
  
He was silent when I as finished.  
  
"So, I'm not related to him?" he asked.  
  
"No," I said smiling, "And he's not going to try and get you back," I added.  
  
He broke into a huge grin and a tear streamed down his cheek, "Oh thank you, I don't know what I would do without you Skye, I love you," he cried.  
  
"I love you too, Tyler, very much," I held him to my chest and comforted him.  
  
After a while Derek appeared at the top of the stairs, "Dinner's ready," he called.  
  
We stood up and started up the stairs.  
  
"This means that you aren't my sister," Tyler said quietly.  
  
I nodded, "But I will always love you like a brother," I told him.  
  
I thought I saw a flash of sadness and disappointment in his eyes but I ignored it.  
  
We went into the dining room. Both Erin and Greg looked despondent sitting in the high backed chairs. Anthony was nowhere to be seen.  
  
"Is Anthony coming?" I asked.  
  
Erin shook her head; "He's busy at the shop," she said bitterly.  
  
Couldn't he take two hours away from work to be with his family? I had seen this workaholic trait in him when I was married to him. He was selfish and inconsiderate. I didn't expect he would ever change.  
  
His twin brother, Trevor had been so much like him. It saddened me that they never got to know eachother before Trevor died.  
  
I tried not to think of him to often, it just made my feel sad and guilty. I had always felt responsible for all the bad things that happened to Trevor. I had no desire to ever go back to the scene of the crimes, La Vie.  
  
I didn't know then that sometimes you have to do things you don't want to do. 


	6. Chapter Five

Chapter 5  
  
We all had a wonderful dinner despite the absence of Anthony. Erin was very quiet throughout the whole first course of lasagna and Caesar salad. I tried to involve her in the conversation but she just didn't want to talk.  
  
Hope and Greg had a great time together. They wanted to leave the table after only eating a few bites of the salad and lasagna was Hope's favourite! I let them leave the table after they ate the rest of their salad. They ran straight for the playroom.  
  
Tyler stood up while Rachel was serving desert.  
  
"Don't you want any cheesecake?" Derek asked him.  
  
"No, I'm going to go call Keely," he said. He glanced at me before leaving the room.  
  
We were eating the delicious cherry cheesecake when the phone rang. Erin's face lit up with hope. I could tell she hoped it was Anthony saying he was on his way for desert. I knew it wouldn't be him. Rachel answered the phone in the kitchen. She poked her head out the door. She had a weird look on her face, as if she knew exactly how I would react to this call and it wasn't going to be good.  
  
"Skye, you better come in here," she said.  
  
I stood up quickly. What could be wrong now? I wondered.  
  
"It's Maxine Jamieson," she whispered, her hand covering the mouthpiece on the phone. I gasped in surprise. I hadn't spoken with my grandmother in almost ten year. Why would she be calling me now?  
  
"Thank you Rachel," I took the phone from her.  
  
"Hello?" I said.  
  
"Skye, there you are," Maxine's voice said back to me, "I've been looking all over for you,"  
  
"You have?" I asked surprised.  
  
"Yes, yes, you just left the night Trevor died, I was left all alone here, all alone," she babbled. She didn't sound well. She sounded like she was confused and disoriented.  
  
"Are you ok Maxine?" I asked a little worried. She was my paternal Grandmother after all.  
  
"No, I want you to come here," she said.  
  
"What?" I whispered, "I don't think that's a good-"  
  
"Oh never mind, you are coming here to visit me, I'm not going to last much longer you know, it could be any day now, I could croak any day," she said.  
  
I just stood in my kitchen in silence. I had no desire to visit Maxine. I didn't want to go back to Toronto. I didn't know if I could handle seeing my old room. The room where Trevor and I first made love. I had loved Trevor and I didn't want to bring painful memories back up.  
  
Suddenly another voice was on the phone, "Mrs. Jamieson is too tired to talk," she said. She had a low voice that I didn't recognize. At first I thought it might be Dena, the maid, but her voice wasn't so low.  
  
"Who are you?" I blurted out rudely.  
  
"I'm Ms. Jenkins, Mrs. Jamieson's nurse," she answered.  
  
"Nurse?" I asked. Maxine had always been healthy as a horse, she never even got so much as a cough in the four year I had lived with her. She had always been so strong, she wouldn't let something as pathetic as a cold get her down.  
  
"Yes, she wants me to tell you to come and visit her, she isn't well and she doesn't have much time left here, she needs to talk to you, you are her last family member left that she cares to see," Ms Jenkins recited. It sounded like she was reading it from a script that Maxine had written for her. I wouldn't have been surprised if that were true.  
  
"I have to talk to my husband, can I get back to you?" I asked. I was feeling a little overwhelmed. It never crossed my mind that Maxine might try to contact me, I had always pushed that possibility far, far away.  
  
"Call tomorrow or I will call you," she said and hung up. I stared at the receiver in shock.  
  
Rachel came into the kitchen and saw the look on my face. She was carrying the desert dishes, which she quickly dumped in the sink and came over to me.  
  
"What happened?" she asked, concerned.  
  
"Maxine wants me to come visit," I told her what the maid said to me, "I don't know if I can go back there Rachel,"  
  
"How strange that she would call you now after all these years," she said. Rachel knew everything that had happened before I came to live in Duncan when I was eighteen. She had been my best friend when I arrived in a new town knowing no one.  
  
I nodded, "I have to speak with Derek," I said. I hurried out to the dining room where Erin and Derek were chatting.  
  
"Derek I have to talk to you," I said.  
  
He looked at me with a concerned look on his face .I never barged in on people or interrupted conversations. He knew that the person on the phone had upset me.  
  
"I'll get Greg, we came show ourselves out, thank you for dinner," Erin said standing up.  
  
I nodded at her. Rachel went to watch Hope while I spoke with my husband. We went into the den and sat down.  
  
"What is it Skye?" he asked.  
  
"Maxine wants us to come visit," I said quietly. I told him everything she and the nurse had said to me.  
  
He sat in silence for a minute. He was just as surprised as I was that she had found me up here. She had never made any effort before to find me as far as I knew.  
  
"Well I guess we will go next week," he said simply.  
  
"What?" I cried in surprise. I thought he would refuse to go back there.  
  
"She needs you, she doesn't want to die alone, that's all," Derek explained. He squeezed my hand.  
  
"I.I guess you're right," I relented. Derek was so much more considerate than I was. I hadn't even thought about the possibility that she didn't want to be alone anymore. How could I have been so selfish?  
  
"We'll take Hope and Tyler with us, Hope should meet her great Grandmother," Derek said.  
  
I nodded uncertainly. I didn't want Hope in that house. So many bad things had happened there. I didn't want anything bad to happen to my daughter.  
  
"It'll be fine," Derek told me.  
  
We sat on the couch together for a long while. I was very nervous about going back to La Vie. I didn't want to remember what had gone on there before. It was all too painful. I could hardly remember one good thing that had happened there. Anthony had made a shrine dedicated to me and gone crazy. Gregory had jumped off the balcony and killed himself.  
  
Hope came into the room after awhile. She was in her little pink Barbie pajamas. Her dark hair had been brushed out neatly. She ran into Derek's arms and giggled when he threw her into the air.  
  
We carried her up to bed together and tucked her into her huge bed with Barbie covers. She hugged her white teddy bear close to her and stared up at us innocently.  
  
"We are going to visit your great Grandmother next week," I told her.  
  
"I have a Grandma?" she asked, her eyes widening.  
  
"She's my Grandmother, your Great Grandmother," I told her smiling. She didn't know any relatives other that Greg, Erin, Derek and I. She called Rachel and Wesley her aunt and uncle.  
  
Maybe it would be good for her to see her relative.  
  
I could only hope I was doing the right thing by taking her to La Vie. 


	7. Chapter Six

Chapter Six  
  
The week before we would have to leave for Toronto went by so fast that I hardly even remember what I did. It seems when you want to do something the time goes slowly but when you don't want to do something the time goes by quickly. I really wasn't looking forward to visiting La Vie and all the bad memories. I couldn't say the same for Hope and Tyler. They were both so excited about going. Tyler was more excited that he was going to get to miss a week of school. But Hope, she couldn't stop talking about meeting her grandmother. I tried to explain to her that Maxine was her Great- Grandmother but she didn't listen. After awhile I just let her say Grandma. I didn't think Maxine would want to be reminded that she was a Great- Grandmother anyway.  
  
When the Monday came that we were going to leave for Toronto, I had trouble getting out of bed. I was dreading going back there.  
  
"Come on Skye, it's not going to be that bad," Derek prodded. He was already up and dressed, I was still in bed with the covers over my head.  
  
"I'm nervous about this," I grumbled. Suddenly I realized I sounded like a whiny little child who wasn't getting her way. I should be mature about this, I thought. Your grandmother is sick, I scolded myself; you can manage to visit once more before she dies. I threw the covers away and got up. I saw Derek smiling at me in the mirror as I went into the bathroom to shower.  
  
By the time I got downstairs, Derek, Tyler and Hope had already been waiting for a half and hour. Hope was playing on the floor in the den with a Barbie. She looked bored with the doll. You knew she was getting really impatient when she was bored with a Barbie.  
  
"Finally," Tyler said jokingly. He got up and grabbed his skateboard. He never went anywhere without that thing.  
  
"Sorry," I said sheepishly. I hadn't meant to keep everyone waiting.  
  
We were on the road to Toronto in the next ten minutes. Tyler was reading a book to Hope in the back seat. I was sitting in the front beside Derek. I couldn't stop rubbing my hands up and down my thighs. It was a nervous habit I'd had for a while now. Derek reached over and caught my hand in his.  
  
"It's going to be okay," he said.  
  
Somehow I believed he would protect me from anything that might happen. Yes, everything would be fine.  
  
"Are we there yet?" Hope chirped from the back about two hours later.  
  
"Almost," I answered with a mixture of happiness and worry in my voice.  
  
We turned onto the road where La Vie was. The whole street was lined with huge houses that would be better described by the words hulking mansions. They had at least four floors, five bathrooms and some had more than ten bedrooms.  
  
La Vie was one of the largest one on the street. And then all of a sudden, there it was, 56 Greyburg Avenue. Huge and threatening. It looked down on me like it was angry I had come back here after all these years. The white gates that used to be so beautiful and inviting were now rusty and old. I peered through the gates and saw that the grounds had been left to grow. There were weeds where there used to be beautiful daisies, roses and daffodils. The grass looked like it hadn't been cut or watered in years. It was long and brown. It looked like dead leaves had fallen off trees all over the yard.  
  
Derek got out of the car and went to the intercom. I watched him push a button but he came back to the car without waiting for an answer.  
  
"It doesn't work, it's all rusty," he said.  
  
"How will we get in?" I wondered out loud.  
  
"It doesn't look like the gates are locked," Tyler piped up from the back.  
  
"Come and help me push them open," Derek said to Tyler. They got out of the car and pushed on the two gates. They opened slowly and screeched in protest all the way.  
  
"What are they doing Mommy?" Hope asked in a tiny voice.  
  
"They are just opening the gate so we can go in honey," I answered. I looked back at her. She was clutching her Barbie tightly. She looked frightened. I reached back and smoothed her dark hair down. Rachel had done it in pigtails this morning but one had come out and the other one looked about to fall out too.  
  
Derek and Tyler came back into the car and we drove threw the gates slowly. It seemed vaguely like a horror movie to me. The grounds totally overgrown, the gates and intercom too rusted to work like they used to.  
  
We got out of the car in front of the four-car garage and stood looking up at the huge house. It seemed like fifty years had gone by instead of only ten. I chilly breeze blew past us and whistled through the trees. The sky was overcast and it looked like a storm was coming. The weather matched my mood perfectly. I had a heavy foreboding feeling in my chest.  
  
I grabbed onto Hope's hand and we started up to the front door. No one said anything as Derek reached up to ring the doorbell. He pressed the button but we heard no ding-dong from inside the house to tell us that the bell worked. He reached up and knocked loudly. We waited a minute before a very large lady in a black cotton dress opened the door. She had black hair and her skin was as white as paper. Her eyes were dark brown and watery. Her and chin were so pointy, she almost looked like a witch.  
  
Hope huddled closer to my side and whimpered. I leaned down and picked her up. She wrapped her arms around my neck and turned away from the giant of a woman.  
  
"Who are you people," she asked in her low voice.  
  
I knew who she was from her deep voice. This was Mrs. Jenkins, the nurse I had talked to on the phone, "I'm Skye Brooks, Maxine's Granddaughter," I told her.  
  
"Oh yeah," she muttered and she stepped back so we could go inside. The inside of the house was no better than the outside. The chandelier that used to hang above the staircase was gone. The carpet on the step was worn and dirty. The wood floor that used to look so shiny and new was now scuffed and dirty also. What had Maxine done to La Vie? Gregory had loved this house, he would be devastated if he could see the condition it was in. Derek glanced at me. He looked just as surprised as I felt. This was so unlike Maxine, to let her house become dirty and old looking. She'd always prided herself on having one of the largest, most elegant house in the neighborhood.  
  
"Mommy, I don't want to Beast to get me," Hope whispered. She thought this was the house from Beauty and the Beast where the Beast kept Belle until he was turned back into a human.  
  
"This isn't where the Best lives honey," I assured her.  
  
"Mrs. Jamieson is sleeping right now, I'll show you where you'll be staying for the week," Mrs. Jenkins said. She started up the stairs. We followed her and the stairs creaked under our combined weight. I remembered walking down those steps on my seventeenth birthday. It hadn't been the most graceful entrance but Trevor had saved me embarrassment. I could still see the look on Anthony's face when Trevor had prevented me form falling instead of him. I shook the memory of that night out of my head quickly. I wanted this visit to be as uneventful as possible. I refused to remember Trevor this week. It would only make me sad.  
  
"Did this house always look like this?" Tyler asked quietly as we followed Mrs. Jenkins down the long corridor.  
  
I shook my head. I was afraid to speak and disturb the ghosts that were lurking around the corners, just waiting for the perfect time to come out.  
  
Mrs. Jenkins stopped at a door that I recognized as my old room. I was just thankful I hadn't gotten Anthony's old room. All the pictures had had put on the walls before were taken down long ago but I knew I'd still be able to see them. That was the moment I believed Gregory had become depressed enough to commit suicide which he did later on. That room did not have any good memories.  
  
"Will you require your own room?" Mrs. Jenkins asked Tyler.  
  
He looked at me.  
  
"Yes, Tyler can have his own room," I said.  
  
She started to lead him to the room next to mine that used to be Anthony's.  
  
"No," I blurted out, "Not that one," I said quieter when Mrs. Jenkins and Tyler turned to stare at me in surprise. She led him to the room across the hall.  
  
We went inside and the memories flooded in. My room was still the same sky blue colour. My bed had the same comforter on it and it still had the same white canopy. The carpet was a soft ivory colour that had always made me feel like I was walking on clouds  
  
"It's exactly the same," Derek said, "Your clothes are still in the closet,"  
  
I set Hope down on the floor and went over to the closet. He was right; all the clothes I had left behind were still in the exact places they had been when I left. I bent down and looked at the rows of shoes. They all had a covering of dust on them. Suddenly I wondered where Dena the maid and Arthur the butler were. I hadn't seen them since we arrived. And Arthur was usually the one who answered the door.  
  
"This is so strange," I breathed. Derek nodded in agreement. There was a knock at the door and Tyler came in. He had a big smile on his face.  
  
"My room in so big!" he exclaimed, "Wow, and so is yours," he added, looking around.  
  
"Where will I sleep Daddy?" Hope asked. She had gotten up off the floor and come over to clutch Derek's hand.  
  
"We'll get a cot for your sweetie," Derek answered.  
  
There was another knock at the door and Mrs. Jenkins walked in without waiting for an answer.  
  
"Mrs. Jamieson is ready to see you now," she said.  
  
My heart jumped into my throat. This was it. This was what I had been dreading or the last week. I took a deep breath, held onto Derek's hand and followed the nurse to see my Grandmother for the first time in ten years. 


	8. Chapter Seven

Chapter Seven  
  
We followed Mrs. Jenkins down the hall slowly. It felt like we were walking the green mile. I didn't think anything good could come of us visiting Maxine.  
  
Derek was carrying Hope and I was walking close beside him. Tyler was following close behind. No one said anything.  
  
Finally we stopped outside a large wooden door. I noticed it wasn't the same room that Maxine and Gregory shared when I lived here. I wondered why she moved form that room. It was the biggest room in the house. Mrs. Jenkins opened the door for us and we stepped in. I was shocked to see Maxine looking tiny in the huge king sized bed. She had the covers pulled up to her chin and you could barely even tell that there was a body under there. Her face was thin and pasty white. Her skin was sagging down off her chin and she looked like she hadn't stopped frowning in years.  
  
"Maxine," I said, moving closer to her bed. I suddenly felt guilty about not wanting to come and visit her. She only wanted to see her only remaining family before she died. Who was I to deprive her of that?  
  
Her eyes fluttered open, "Skye," she rasped through dry lips, "Come," I approached her bed and motioned for everyone else to follow me. Tyler looked reluctant and Hope looked absolutely terrified. She was clinging to Derek's shirt with all her strength.  
  
I sat down on my Grandmother's bedside and took her small hand. It was cold and limp.  
  
"How are you?" I asked.  
  
"I'm doing okay, thank you for coming," she whispered. She glanced over at Hope and Derek and then to Tyler.  
  
"Maxine, this is my husband, Derek Brooks," I said, "You remember him don't you?" I asked.  
  
She nodded but she looked confused, "Anthony," she whispered.  
  
"Anthony lives near me, we were married for a while but it didn't work out," I explained. I wondered if she missed Anthony and Trevor.  
  
"This is our daughter, Hope," I said. Derek set her down on the bed. She stared at Maxine.  
  
"Honey, this is your Great-Grandmother," I told her.  
  
"Hello Hope," Maxine rasped. Hope inched closer to me.  
  
"Hello," she said back.  
  
"And this is my half brother, Tyler," I told Maxine.  
  
"Nice to meet you," Tyler said.  
  
Maxine only nodded. She didn't look interested in anyone but me. "Can I speak with you alone," she asked me.  
  
I looked at Derek. He just shrugged.  
  
"I'll take Hope to get something to eat," Derek said. He picked her up and left the room, Tyler followed close behind. I didn't think any of them felt comfortable in this room. I couldn't blame them. You could practically smell death at the door. I turned back to Maxine, curious about what she wanted to talk to me about.  
  
"Skye, I'm going to die soon," she said, getting right to the point. No change there, I thought. I remembered when I first came here, she drove me to the doctor and had a blood test done to determine if I was Zack's daughter. She made us both sit at the clinic until they had the results back. She wasn't one to waste time.  
  
"I want you to inherit everything," she said.  
  
I stared at her for a moment. I didn't need all this, I was already very well off in Duncan from a trust fund my father's father had set up for his grandchildren.  
  
"No, Maxine, I couldn't," I said.  
  
"Yes, I have no one else to give it to, you are my only living relative," she insisted.  
  
"I don't need all this," I said glancing around at the large room that was going to be the room she died in. There were too many bad memories here; I didn't want this house.  
  
Maxine just lay there staring off into space for a minute. My heart started to pound. Was she dead?  
  
"I'll give it to Hope," she said suddenly.  
  
I shook my head.  
  
"Yes," she decided, "You will be the owner until she turns eighteen, then the Jamieson fortune will be hers," She nodded more to convince herself than to convince me. She didn't care if I approved of this. She would do what she wanted. That knowledge was what stopped me from arguing with her. I knew that I wouldn't win this battle.  
  
"Send Mrs. Jenkins back in," she said.  
  
I took that as a hint that she wanted me to leave. I let go of her hand and left the room in a daze. I found Mrs. Jenkins standing right outside the door. It was like she was standing there listening. I didn't tell her to go in, she already knew.  
  
I went downstairs and found Hope, Derek and Tyler eating sandwiches in the kitchen. The large kitchen used to be one of my favourite places. I used to like to talk to the maid, Dena and the butler, Arthur once in awhile.  
  
Derek stood up when I came in. I probably looked awful. I was so tired from the long trip here today and seeing Maxine again. She had brought me all the way here to tell me that she was going to die and she wanted my three- year-old daughter to have her millions.  
  
"What happened?" Derek asked. I told him what Maxine had said.  
  
"Hope is going to be a millionaire," Tyler said. He reached over and tickled her. She giggled and almost spit her milk all over the table.  
  
I wasn't excited about her having this house when she was eighteen. This house had brought me nothing but pain; I didn't even want it in the family. I decided then and there to do anything I could to get her to sell it when the time came.  
  
"I think we should all just go to bed," Derek said, "This is going to be a long week,"  
  
We all headed upstairs like zombies. When we got to the top of the stairs Hope surprised me.  
  
"Can I sleep in Tyler's room?" she asked.  
  
I looked at Derek. He looked surprised by her saying that too. I thought she would have been too afraid to sleep anywhere but in between Derek and I in our bed.  
  
"I don't mind," Tyler said.  
  
"I guess it's okay then," I said.  
  
I got Hope ready for bed and tucked her in, in a cot beside Tyler's bed. She fell asleep before I even turned the light off.  
  
I went back to my room. Derek was already in bed waiting for me. I climbed in next to him. He put his arm around me and started kissing me. He tried to come closer and he started kissing me harder. Suddenly Trevor's face flashed before me eyes. This was the exact bed that Trevor and I had first made love. Of course Derek didn't know that.  
  
"Derek," I mumbled into his mouth, "Please, not tonight," I pushed him away from me gently. My heart almost broke when I saw the hurt look on his face.  
  
"I'm sorry," I said moving closer to him, "It's just been a long day,"  
  
"It's okay," he said and he hugged me close. I fell asleep in his arms just like I had fallen asleep in Trevor's so many years ago.  
  
I woke up to a thump and a scream. I bolted upright in bed. I heard someone running down the hall.  
  
"Derek!" I cried. He shot out of bed and threw on a pair of pants and a sweatshirt. I pulled on my jeans and sweater and followed him out into the hall. My heart was pounding and I suddenly wished that I had made Hope sleep in our room.  
  
In the hall Tyler was standing in his pajamas. He looked wide-awake. He was just staring down the hall towards the stairs.  
  
"Hope's gone," he said turning to look at us.  
  
My heart stopped.  
  
"What do you mean?" Derek demanded.  
  
"Someone came in and took her," Tyler said.  
  
"You should have gotten her back!!" I yelled at him in fury. How could Hope be gone? Who would take my daughter?  
  
I ran at Tyler and started to hit him. I screamed and screamed until Derek pulled me away from him. I collapsed on the floor in tears.  
  
"It's not Tyler's fault," Derek said.  
  
"We have to find her Derek!" I yelled. I got up and ran down the stairs. I didn't see anyone around. Every room was dark and empty. I ran back up to stairs. Both Derek and Tyler were following me. Tears were running down my cheeks. I ran to Maxine's room and pushed open the door. The lights were all on. Maxine was lying in bed looking up at someone. She looked frightened. I looked at the woman who was standing over her with a knife.  
  
I would recognize that wild, dark hair anywhere.  
  
"Mama!" I screamed in shock. 


	9. Chapter Eight

Chapter Eight  
  
"Hello darling," my mother said smiling. She was standing over Maxine with what looked like a butcher's knife. The metal glinted in the light. Maxine moaned in terror  
  
"Shut up, you old hag," Mama hissed.  
  
"What are you doing here Mama?" I asked, my voice shaking. Derek was standing close behind me. His presence reassured me a little.  
  
"Oh, tying up some loose ends," she said grinning. She was wearing a blue and white-checkered gown that had two ties at the back and a pair of blue jeans that were too big. On her feel were purple flip-flops with red socks that were soaking wet. Her dark hair that I used to love was tangled and greasy. She didn't look like the loving mother I remembered. The mother I remembered would never have held an old helpless woman hostage with a butcher's knife.  
  
"Please give me the knife," I said, taking a step toward her. She lowered the knife closer to Maxine's throat and laughed.  
  
"I don't think so," she said in a singsong voice.  
  
"Mrs. Jamieson, please don't hurt her," Derek said from behind me.  
  
Mama looked up at the new voice. She narrowed her eyes and grinned with glee.  
  
"Who the hell are you?" she asked.  
  
"He's my husband, Derek," I answered.  
  
She just stood there in shock for a minute, "Husband? You had a wedding and you didn't invite me?" she screamed in fury. She came charging at me with the knife pointed at my chest. I dove out of the way just as she made a screaming leap. I hit the floor hard on my elbow and cried out in pain.  
  
Mama stopped and looked back at me. She was smiling again.  
  
"You didn't actually think I would kill my own daughter did you?" she asked.  
  
No one answered.  
  
She looked over at Tyler who was standing very still by the door trying not to be noticed.  
  
"Is that my little Tyler?" she asked no one in particular.  
  
"Yes, I am Tyler," he answered.  
  
"Well then," she said jumping up, "We'll just have to get to know each other now won't we?" she got up and stuck the knife under Tyler's chin. I could literally see him shaking in fear.  
  
"No!" I cried as she started to lead him out of the room.  
  
She pushed the knife deeper into his neck and glared at me, "I need someone to calm down the screaming kid," she said quietly. She watched me for a reaction.  
  
"Hope," I whispered, "Just bring Hope back and leave us alone!" I yelled at her.  
  
She just laughed and left the room taking Tyler with her.  
  
Derek came over and helped me to my feet. My legs wobbled and tears were streaming down my face. What were we going to do? I hadn't seen my mother in twenty years. I didn't even know where she had been that whole time. Why had she come back to La Vie? Did she know I was going to be here with my family?  
  
Derek sat me down on the bed. Maxine was lying back, staring at the ceiling, not blinking. I stared at her a moment. Her chest wasn't rising and falling.  
  
"Derek!" I cried. He ran to her and checked her pulse.  
  
"She's dead," he said.  
  
"No, no, no, no, no, this can't be happening," I wailed.  
  
"We have to call the police," Derek said. He went to the phone on the bedside table.  
  
"It's dead," he said. His face was scrunched up and I could tell he was trying for my sake not to lose control.  
  
Suddenly there was a loud thunderclap and it started to pour. I could hear the loud drops on the roof and on the railing of the balcony. And then, when I thought things couldn't have possible gotten any worse, the lights went out. The room was pitch black until a lightning strike lit up the room. I caught a glimpse of Derek with his head in his hands.  
  
"We have to find Hope and Tyler," I said, standing up straight. I was not going to let my mother get to me. I was going to beat her. She had already ruined my life years ago by leaving me; I wouldn't let her ruin my new life.  
  
My eyes started to adjust to the life and I felt my way over to Derek. He stiffened when I touched him. I put my arms around him and didn't let go until he hugged me back. I knew I couldn't do this alone. I needed Derek's help.  
  
"Where could see have taken them?" he asked.  
  
I didn't know. I barely knew my mother. I didn't know what she would do.  
  
"No need to look for little old me," my mother said, coming back into the dark room. Her face looked calm and in control. She had a small smile on her face that made me want to lash out and punch her.  
  
"Where did you take them?" I demanded. I noticed the light glint off the knife when the lightening struck again. This time it had dark red blood on it.  
  
I struggled not to break down into hysterics. I pushed any thought of Tyler or Hope hurt and just glared at my mother.  
  
I decided to talk calmly to her, "Where have you been all these years Mama?" I asked. I was holding onto Derek's hand so tightly I thought I might cut off the circulation.  
  
"Oh, prissy Maxine didn't tell you?" she asked, "Of course she didn't, she wouldn't want to disgrace her family," she sneered at Maxine's still body on the bed.  
  
"I've been in a mental hospital, if you can believe that," she answered. She looked genuinely confused about why in the world she would be sent there.  
  
"I came here after I left your idiot father and they sent me away," she said.  
  
"I know Fred isn't my father," I told her quietly. I wasn't sure how she would react to me knowing one of her big secrets. She had left the box for me to find, but she wasn't thinking straight now. What if she was angry?  
  
"Oh, you found the box then did you?" she asked smiling. She walked over to the glass balcony doors and looked out into the storm. She looked content for a minute looking out into the chaos. She liked chaos, it seemed, since she had created all that had been on my life since I was born.  
  
"I bet you didn't know that Tyler and Erin were adopted," she said, turning around and smiling cruelly.  
  
"I did," I said.  
  
"What?" she asked, "Don't I get to tell any of my own secrets?" she screamed in a rage again. She wanted to tell me her secrets to hurt me. Why did she want to hurt her only child. Erin, Tyler and Anthony were not related to her in any way and yet she didn't try to hurt them.  
  
"I know all your secrets, I know you kidnapped Anthony," I said.  
  
Her face turned beet red.  
  
"You are an awful person who only thinks of herself and you should have been locked in a padded room so you could never hurt anyone again," I yelled at her. I was vaguely aware of how angry I was making her, but I didn't care. I wanted her to hurt like I had.  
  
"You ungrateful little bitch!" she screamed at me.  
  
"What do I have to be grateful for that you ever gave me?" I asked, "Should I thank you for lying to me my whole life? Should I thank you for leaving me with a father who you knew was abusive and who you knew would never protect me like a real father would?"  
  
Her face was changing into a look of surprise.  
  
"I'll never thank you for anything, Mother," I said, "You aren't even a mother to me, you might as well be dead for all I care!"  
  
"Skye I-" she didn't get to finish her sentence before Derek dove at her. They crashed through the glass doors in a tangled heap. Derek screamed out in pain as her knife slashed across his forearm. Blood dripped from to cut and was washed away from the pounding rain. They were both soaked through in seconds.  
  
I ran to the broken doors and screamed in terror as they rolled too close to the edge. "Derek!" I screamed.  
  
He pulled away from my mother and stood up. He kicked her knife through the holes in the railing. I knew we still weren't safe. Mama stood up and lightening flashed, showing her face in an angry snarl. She laughed and pushed Derek hard into the railing. He yelped in surprise at her strength. She kicked pushed him again against the railing and I heard a cracking sound. I ran out on to the balcony. The railing cracked and tumbled away from Derek. He dropped out of sight and I screamed in terror.  
  
Then suddenly my mother fell too. I could see her fingers holding onto the edge of the balcony. I ran to the edge. Lightening flashed and I saw Derek holding onto my mother's legs. She stared up at me with an inhuman grin.  
  
"Now I can hurt you more than you could ever hurt me with words," she said.  
  
I grabbed at her fingers but I was too late.  
  
She let go. 


	10. Chapter Nine

Chapter Nine  
  
The next twenty-four hours was torture for me.  
  
I stared down at the heap on the concrete below the balcony. I could see my mother's white nightgown when lightning flashed. I couldn't see Derek and I prayed that he was okay. I prayed that he had gotten up and was on his way back up here. He had to be. I couldn't lose another person I loved.  
  
Tears and rain ran down my cheeks. Finally it became obvious that Derek was not coming back up here. He was down there under my mother where I couldn't see him.  
  
I collapsed on the ground and screamed in agony. I pounded the ground with my fists in fury. What had I done to deserve this? I wondered.  
  
"WHAT DID I DO?" I screamed at the dark sky. The rain was subsiding now. The thunder claps were quieter and less frequent now.  
  
I heard a siren getting closer and all I could think of was a stretcher taking away my husband's body with a white sheet covering it. Just like Gregory.  
  
This was the same balcony that Gregory had jumped off of that night so many years ago. My mother had caused his death that is what I always believed. She had taken his son away from him and when he finally was returned to his rightful family, he had changed. Gregory had been so fragile. Now my mother had done it again. She had killed again.  
  
I saw a blue and red light flashing against the brick wall of the house. Who had called the police? I got up slowly and went down the stairs. I longed for Derek to hug me and keep me standing. I had to see if he was really dead. I sprinted to the back of the house where they had fallen. There were two paramedics loading my mother's body onto a stretcher. The front of her nightgown was covered in blood. I looked at my husband's unmoving form. He was not moving.  
  
I ran to the paramedics.  
  
"Miss, you can't be here," the older one said.  
  
"This is my mother and that is my husband I saw everything that happened," I said quickly. They were not going to get me away from Derek. I would never leave him.  
  
"The police are on their way," the paramedic said.  
  
I knelt beside Derek's broken body. The body that used to be so beautiful. He was face down on the pavement. His blond hair matted to the back of his head from the rain. I longed to look into his hazel eyes again.  
  
"Hope!" I suddenly remembered. The police were just pulling into the yard. I ran to them screaming.  
  
"Calm down miss," the man said, "What is it?"  
  
"My daughter is missing, my mother took her somewhere, and you have to find her!" I cried. New tears were running down my swollen cheeks. I couldn't lose my daughter and husband in the same night.  
  
The police officers left to search the grounds. I sat inside the police car with the door open. I watched as the paramedics lifted Derek's body onto a stretcher and put the white sheet over his head. I wished I could go back in time and stop all this from happening. I knew coming back to La Vie was a bad idea. I walked over to the ambulance.  
  
"Can I just sit with him for a minute?" I asked quietly. The younger paramedic looked at my sympathetically and nodded.  
  
I climbed into the back of the ambulance and sat beside Derek's stretcher. My mother was on the other side of the ambulance. I could make out the form of her nose and lips through the sheet. Something bittersweet went through me then. I hadn't seen my mother for so many years and now she was dead. Right now I thought she deserved to die for what she had done to everyone I loved. But she was my mother it was still hard.  
  
I lifted the sheet off Derek's handsome face. I cried harder when I saw what he looked like. His nose looked broken and the rest of his face was black and blue. I pictured him before we left to come here. He had been excited to come back to the city where he had grown up. He was going to take Hope to visit his parents during the week we were staying for.  
  
"Derek," I sobbed, "I'm so sorry," I found his hand under the sheet and squeezed it tightly. I lay my head down on his chest. How many times had a done this before? I always felt so safe with Derek. I knew he would always protect me. He died because of me. I should never of dragged him into my messed up life. I should have left Toronto and made sure he would never find me. He would be alive now if I hadn't been so selfish. Now I knew that when you left a place you could never look back. I left here for a reason; I never should have come back.  
  
"Mommy!" I heard Hope yell. I quickly covered Derek's face for he last time. I knew I would never see him again. He was gone forever.  
  
"Hope!" I cried in joy. My stomach dropped out of my throat as I ran out of the ambulance to catch her up in my arms. She was okay. Tyler was standing behind her a little. He looked scared and sad. I saw by the look on his face that he knew who was under the sheets in the ambulance.  
  
He looked up at me, "What did you do?" he asked. His face changed into a look of anger and he ran back towards the house.  
  
"Tyler!" I yelled after him.  
  
"Tyler will be okay Mommy," Hope said. I hugged her tightly, envious of her sweet, innocent oblivion. I wished I didn't know what was going on. Hope didn't know that she would never see her father again. She was just happy to be away from wherever she had been.  
  
"We found them in the pool house, the door was padlocked," the female officer told me.  
  
"Thank you so much," I said.  
  
She just nodded.  
  
As I stood in the middle of the crime scene hugging my daughter I couldn't help wondering if I was just ruining everyone's life. I was bad luck for everyone that I met. I watched another pair of paramedics carry another stretcher with a white sheet out the door of the house. Maxine was under there.  
  
"Where's Daddy?" Hope asked.  
  
I looked at her little face and swallowed a sob. How would I explain this to her?  
  
"He's watching us right now, don't worry about him," I said to her. She glanced around at all the people rushing around us. She had a confused look on her face when she couldn't find him.  
  
I hoped that Derek was looking down on us and that he would help me get through this.  
  
We went to a motel that night. The police officers found it for us and told me they would need me to come to the station tomorrow to give them my statement. They were nice enough to let me do it the next day instead of tonight.  
  
Tyler had trudged behind us to the police car. He sat as far away from me as he could. He crossed his arms and stared out the window for the whole trip.  
  
When we got to the hotel I put Hope in bed. Tyler had already climbed into his bed and lay facing away from me.  
  
"Tyler," I said.  
  
He didn't answer me.  
  
I climbed into bed next to Hope and lay there not trying to fall asleep. It had been a long time since I had slept in a bed without Derek beside me. I knew I wouldn't fall asleep without his arm around me so I didn't try.  
  
I stared up at the ceiling and remember the days when I was still in high school. The day I was accepted to Western University. I remembered how happy we had been that we wouldn't be going to different schools. WE had everything planned out then. But things don't always go as planned. If they did, I wouldn't be here with my daughter and my brother, but still feel all alone. 


	11. Chapter Ten

Chapter Ten  
  
Things didn't get better the next day. I thought Tyler would get over the initial shock of Derek's death and speak to me again, but he continued to ignore me. I left Hope with him at the hotel while I went to the police station to give my statement. I spoke to Officer Grimes.  
  
"Mrs. Brookes, I'm very sorry for your loss," he said as I sat down across from him in his office. I hadn't cried yet that day and I had no intention of crying at all.  
  
"Thank you," I said.  
  
"Can you tell me everything that happened last night?" he asked.  
  
I wasn't planning on telling him my whole story. I just couldn't explain to him why my mother was there without telling him about the trailer home in Monkton and my mother running away. I told him about my uncle Fred just getting out of jail and my how my real father was dead. I even told him what had happened with Anthony and Erin back in Duncan. He didn't interrupt me once. He just sat back and listened to everything I had to say. It felt good to tell someone everything. The only person outside my family that knew everything was Rachel and I hadn't been able to talk with her much anymore.  
  
"That is quite a story," the officer said leaning back in his chair. Officer Grimes had very shiny black hair and brown eyes. His nose was straight and he had a strong jaw. He was very good looking and he didn't look older than thirty. But I couldn't think about anyone but Derek. Officer Grimes' eyes were hazel now and he had blond hair.  
  
"I need to get back to my daughter, I'd like to leave Toronto as soon as possible," I said.  
  
He nodded in understanding.  
  
He handed me his card and said, "You can call me anytime, here or at home, I wrote my home number on the back," he smiled.  
  
I stared at him a moment and then fury bubbled up in my throat, "I'm not looking for a date, Officer Grimes," I said sharply.  
  
He smile faded and he shook his head, "No, I wasn't-"  
  
I cut him off before he could finish, "I'm not stupid, do I look stupid?" I said my voice getting louder.  
  
"Now, just calm down and let me explain," he said, his face was turning red.  
  
"I don't need you to explain! I can be a single mother! I CAN! But, I can't live without Derek," I said quietly.  
  
Officer Grimes sat in silence staring at me sympathetically. I hated that sympathy. I was strong. I shouldn't be pitied.  
  
"Don't look at me like that," I whispered and I turned and left the police station in tears. So much for my no more crying plan. I sat in my car in front of the station for what felt like hours. I thought I could do it, but I couldn't. I needed Derek, I couldn't raise Hope on my own. Tears streamed down my cheeks.  
  
I started the car up and drove back to the hotel. I wiped away my tears so Tyler and Hope wouldn't see how out of control I was. They needed to know that I could handle things even if I didn't know I could.  
  
They were both sleeping when I walked into the room. I looked at my sweet little daughter who had the perfect family before. Now her father was gone and she wasn't going to understand. I dreaded telling her that he wasn't coming back. Would she cry? Would she ignore what I said and still watch at the window for him everyday when he was supposed to be home?  
  
You shouldn't look back. Too bad I didn't know that before.  
  
The next day I took Hope to see Derek's parents. The police had notified them about his death. They deserved to see their granddaughter.  
  
Derek had lived in a huge house near La Vie. I could see the top of La Vie's roof from Derek's driveway. I had been nervous about coming so close to it again but I swallowed my fears and came anyway.  
  
Tyler refused to come with us. All he wanted to do was lay in bed or watch TV. Derek had been almost like a father to him and he didn't know what to do without him.  
  
I knocked on the door of the big white brick house and waited. Hope was standing beside me, she was wearing a little navy blue dress with matching bows in her dark hair. She held tightly to a doll that  
  
Derek had given her only two months ago for her birthday. She named the doll Kelly.  
  
A woman probably in her sixties opened the door. She was wearing a plain, long, black dress. Her hair was stark white and she had it up in a bun at the back of her head.  
  
"Skye," she said. She came forward and hugged me tightly. Derek had invited his parents to our wedding and they had come. He was close to this family and missed them a great deal, living so far away from them. But he didn't complain because he knew I wanted to live far away from La Vie. He had sacrificed so much for me and now he had made the ultimate sacrifice.  
  
"Miranda," I said. I swallowed the tears that were threatening to explode on my cheeks. I wanted to look calm and composed, not like an out of control wreck.  
  
"This is Hope, you granddaughter," I said.  
  
"Little Hope," Miranda said kneeling down to Hope's eyes level, "She has Derek's eyes," she said.  
  
"I know," I said, my voice cracking.  
  
"Come in to the living room dear," Miranda said. We followed her into a large living room with beautiful leather furniture. I sat on a chair and Hope sat on my lap. She had been very quiet all day. I think she was starting to really wonder where her father was.  
  
A man with gray hair and hazel eyes just like Derek's came into the room then. He had to same nose and chin as Derek. I wondered if that was what Derek would have looked like when he got old. I would never know.  
  
"Vincent, this is Derek's daughter," Miranda said to her husband.  
  
Vincent came closer and looked at Hope in wonder.  
  
"Hope, these are your Grandparents," I told her. She squeezed Kelly closer.  
  
"We have something for you," Miranda said. She picked up a photo album up off the table and handed it to me. It was covered in brown leather. I opened it on my lap so Hope could see. It was full of pictures of Derek growing up. He looked so cute in his little sailor suit on the sail boat his family owned. Tears welled up in my eyes as I turned the pages and watched him grow up. The pictures ended when he was about twenty. He had left home to search for me.  
  
"I'm so sorry," I sobbed, unable to hold back my tears anymore.  
  
"Oh dear, it's okay, he was a wonderful man, he wouldn't have wanted you to be sad, he would want you to go on with your life and raise your daughter the best way you know how," Miranda said coming to hug me.  
  
"Mommy, don't cry, Daddy, will come back," Hope said quietly.  
  
I looked at her face. Her eyebrows were furrowed in concern.  
  
"No, he won't honey," I said to her. She had somehow convinced her that Derek was coming back, "Daddy is in Heaven now," I said to her.  
  
She just stared at me in concern.  
  
We left the Brookes house a little while later telling them that we'd be at the funeral tomorrow. They wanted to keep Derek's body in Toronto to bury in the family section of the graveyard. I had agreed half-heartedly. It didn't matter to me where he was buried, he's still be gone.  
  
The funeral was packed full with people from Derek's father's work. I had called Rachel the night before and told her the bad news. I said she didn't have to come down, but she insisted. She arrived on the train an hour before the funeral.  
  
We hugged and cried together. Tyler was with Hope waiting in the car. They both wore black and sad faces. Hope knew now that her father wasn't coming back.  
  
"What am I going to do without him Rachel?" I asked through sobs.  
  
"It'll be fine, you have lots of friends to help you," she said smiling a little.  
  
Derek's parents chose beautiful white casket for his to be buried in. It was closed through the ceremony due to the injuries he had received from the fall.  
  
I didn't cry until the first shovel of dirt was thrown into the hole where my beloved husband would be forever.  
  
Rachel took Tyler and Hope back to the hotel to pack up all our things. She even went to La Vie for me to get Derek's suitcase. I sat beside the tombstone that Miranda had made for Derek. It read: "Derek Colin Brookes, Beloved, Husband, Son and Father, He will be dearly missed,"  
  
I sat there just staring at the mound of fresh dirt. I tried not to think about Derek's body under the ground. I told myself he wasn't in there anymore. He was in Heaven, looking down on me.  
  
"Skye?" a voice said from behind me. It sounded vaguely familiar.  
  
I turned around and gasped in surprise.  
  
It was Trevor. 


	12. Epilogue

Epilogue  
  
It took me awhile to get over the initial shock of seeing Trevor standing there. I thought I had to be dreaming. Trevor had been killed years ago in a car accident.  
  
He explained everything to me. When the car went into the lake, he had been able to open to window and swim out. They had never found his body and when he saw the news that they thought he was dead, he decided to go with it. He felt like he couldn't live without me and I was with Derek then. He left Toronto and didn't contact anyone from his former life. But eventually he got lonely. He went to Duncan to visit me.  
  
He knew that I had left Toronto with Anthony the night he died so he decided to visit me. He watched me from afar and saw I was with Anthony. He watched as Anthony and Erin got closer and they day that Derek moved into the house next to Nikola.  
  
"The day you tried to kill yourself, I was there," he said.  
  
"You.did you save me?" I asked slowly. I had never found out who that was. The day I walked into the frozen lake and tried to drown myself. Neither Anthony nor Derek ever seemed to know anything about it.  
  
"Yes," Trevor answered.  
  
"This is unbelievable," I said.  
  
"I know," he said.  
  
Trevor decided to move out to Duncan. He got an apartment in town. He said he wanted to be closer to Anthony and me but I think it was mostly me he wanted to be with. He helped me a lot with getting over Derek's death. He talked to me about how I felt about my mother and everything that had happened.  
  
Anthony was very surprised to see his brother again. They had never been very close but seeing someone come back from the dead can change a person. They spent a lot of time together and Trevor started working with Anthony at the store.  
  
Hope seemed to really like Trevor and I was getting closer with him every day.  
  
A year after Derek's death, Trevor and I were married. I felt like I had gone back in time to when we had first met.  
  
It was a bittersweet moment the first time Hope called Trevor, Daddy. I didn't want her to forget Derek, but it seemed inevitable. She was only three when he died. I couldn't force her to remember him. I knew that I would never forget him and when she was old enough I would tell her the truth and show her the picture album.  
  
When Hope was five, I became pregnant again. Trevor was overjoyed and so was I. I wanted Hope to have a brother or sister.  
  
"I hope I get a sister," Hope said excitedly almost everyday until the day I went into labor. I called Trevor at the store and he came rushing home.  
  
The delivery went smoothly and I was now blessed with a son. Hope was disappointed at first but she forgot about how much she wanted a sister when she saw her little brother, Colin.  
  
When I suggested it, I didn't know if Trevor remembered that that was Derek's middle name. If he did, then he didn't acknowledge it.  
  
I had the perfect little family and I hoped that now everything would run smoothly. I wouldn't forget about Derek. Sometimes I'd look up at the sky and see he beautiful face smiling down at me. He would have wanted me to be happy, and now I felt like I finally was. 


	13. Author's Note

A/N  
  
So, that is it for Skye's story. I'll be starting the next one from Hope's point of view.  
  
What did everyone think of the ending of Dark Clouds? Did you think that bringing Trevor back was too much?  
  
I appreciate all the reviews and please keep it up! 


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